


i'd prefer a see you later to a mere goodbye

by solsticeflux



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Role Reversal, Artistic License Is My Best Friend, F/M, M/M, Roleswap AU, also angst, i apologize for any mistakes its 5am im so tired, i completely forgot about murder on the rockport limited, is angst/me a pairing, reaper taako and reclaimer kravitz, thats important this is not happy no matter what the title makes it seem
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-23
Updated: 2016-11-23
Packaged: 2018-09-01 17:39:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8632387
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/solsticeflux/pseuds/solsticeflux
Summary: Being a Reclaimer is tough, the hardest thing Kravitz has ever done. But it’s all he can do after what happened in Phandalin.He has to make it right, he has to fix it.Reclaimer Kravitz gets more than he bargained for, and makes some difficult choices.He has no time for regrets.





	

**Author's Note:**

> i take artistic license with like. all of the crystal kingdom arc.  
> also with a certain relic's powers but thats not important til way later  
> bc its roleswap au nothing has to happen _exactly_ like it does in the podcast but I tried to keep it as close as possible while still being different?

Being a Reclaimer is tough, the hardest thing Kravitz has ever done. But it’s all he can do after what happened in Phandalin. He has to make it right, he has to fix it. His two other friends, Brian, and Jenkins, aren’t as happy about their new position. They all don’t like the idea of nearly dying, time and time again, but it’s out of their hands. 

They push on. 

The first time Kravitz cries is when they can’t save Carey and Killian. He tried, _god he tried,_ so hard. He wanted them to live. He wanted them to be _happy._ He sees, not for the first time, the destructive nature of the relics. They only take, he tells himself. No matter what power they offer, they only take. 

It’s a small blessing that they don’t have to bury the women’s bodies. Kravitz doesn’t know if he could take it, seeing them lying there with no life left in them. Not when they had been so full of it only an hour before. The man considers the idea that that is part of it, too. That the relics purposely destroy any trace of those who use them. He picks up the belt, ignoring the thrall that whispers at the back of his mind. Killian and Carey will live on in his memory, and he will not _dirty_ that by letting this object tempt him. Brushing past his teammates and ignoring their questioning glances, he calls for their ride home. He wants to destroy the Gaia Sash as soon as possible; just holding it causes a bitter taste to rise in his throat. 

He can’t stand the relics. 

The ride back to the fake moon is silent, heavy with what they couldn’t achieve. Kravitz barely registers any of it. The Sash is dead weight in his pack, and he can still hear it muttering promises. They dock, and the dark-haired man practically throws the item at the director. The dwarf looks it over for a moment before summoning his lackey to destroy it. He makes no comment on their grim expressions; merely sends them away for some rest. Jenkins and Brian head off to buy items, leaving Kravitz alone. He doesn’t mind the solitude, prefers it, in fact. He heads to the training room, ignoring the slightly reverent stares of fellow Bureau members. The bracer on his right arm feels almost constricting. When Director Highchurch had inoculated them he’d promised they’d be able to do good. 

The relic may be destroyed, but Kravitz doesn’t feel very _good_ about it. They recovered it, yes, but hadn’t Carey and Killian deserved to live? He can’t call it winning with a clear conscience, not when innocents have died. He trains until the burn in his muscles matches the burn in his eyes. 

 

The next time the Director calls them in for a mission, it’s Candlenights. The voice of a man, gruff, rings through his stone of farspeech and suddenly they’re off to recover another relic. Heroes don’t take holidays, Brian says. They’re in null-suits, ready for whatever the Burnsides Lab throws at them. According to their very short debriefing, the man had lost his wife some time ago and has been using a relic -- the Philosopher’s Stone -- to do… _something_ related to his late wife. Director Highchurch hadn’t been able to give them much more information then that.  
Only that Magnus Burnsides is a good man. 

Kravitz had nodded, but anyone who used a relic would have a hard time convincing the Reclaimer that they are a “good person.” 

Personal feelings or no, the relic is still in his hands and they _must_ get it back. Kravitz won’t have another Goldcliff, not on his watch. He barely feels his null-suit as they wander around the lab, despite Jenkins complaining about the texture of the material. They fight many things through the course of their trek through the Burnsides Lab. Everything from robots, to masses of crystal that have somehow become sentient. Brian throws around some theories about that; likely has something to do with the Philosopher’s Stone, likely some magic. He can’t be bothered to actually check, because the enemies are dead before he even has a chance to try. No one questions Kravitz’s zeal. 

They meet Magnus Burnsides. 

It’s obvious to all of them that the man is, for lack of a better term, broken. There’s something about his eyes that doesn’t sit right, the way they move or how they shine. He shows them the cosmoscope, and they understand what he has been doing with the relic. He wants to rip into the Astral Plane -- the plane of the dead -- and pull his wife from it. The Philosopher’s Stone is the only thing powerful enough to do it, they’re told. Magnus’ voice is shaky, he’s so close and he knows it, he _knows_ it. 

Kravitz almost feels bad that he has to stop the man. 

They prepare to attack, but before they can so much as draw their weapons, Burnsides bolts from the room. Brian attempts to follow along with the rest and they make it only to just out of the room before something freezes them in place. Magic, Brian states with some difficulty, and if Kravitz had the ability to make any kind of scathing comment, he would. Unfortunately, his mouth doesn’t seem to want to work the way he’s trying to will it to. Even so, he keeps at it until a slight sound leaves his mouth, and another voice chimes. 

“Four in one spot? Hot shit, that’s my jam.” Unwillingly, the Reclaimer’s heads turn towards what appears to be a pocket in space and time, hovering some feet above the ground. From it drifts an elf holding an umbrella. He lands gracefully on the floor of the lab and rights his umbrella like a weapon. “Sorry, boys, you’re gonna have to come with me.” He flashes a smile, and in the time it took to enter in such a dramatic fashion is just enough time for Brian to cast Dispel Magic. Kravitz can feel his arms again and he wastes no time pulling sword on the mystery man. 

“Out of my way.” He says, stepping forward in what he hopes is a threatening stride. He has to stop Magnus Burnsides, or at the very least, recover the relic. It’s his job, yes, but it’s also become something like his personal creed. 

“Oh, you look even hotter when you’re trying to be scary.” The stranger flashes a smirk, not at all intimidated. “I’m just gonna tell ya right now, Kravitz. You can’t kill me.” The Reclaimer barely has any time to think, let alone process the flirtatious voice of the man who somehow knows his name, before a blast of hot air hits Kravitz right across the face. The stranger had cast Scorching Ray, from his _umbrella_ no less, and Jenkins had just barely pushed him out of the way. Mumbling a quick thanks, Kravitz stands up and readies his weapon once more. He knows he can land at least one hit. Or, so he thinks, but as he raises his arm to strike hard, the stranger just lifts his umbrella and blocks the blow, then gracefully dances out of the way as Jenkins tries to land his own magical attack. 

“Hey, asshole,” Jenkins spits, more than a little miffed that his attack was so easily dodged. “You know our names, are you ever going to tell us yours?” Kravitz doesn’t think that’s the most important question here, but any information is better than none. 

“Hold your shit, homie. I’m the Grim Reaper.” Is the answer they receive and Kravitz blinks, once, twice. It seems like a joke, but after what they’ve seen, he’s more than inclined to believe it. 

“But that’s not your _name.”_ Brian points out, fighting halted as the reaper casually leans on his umbrella like a cane. Somehow, Kravitz knows they won’t be able to beat him. 

“You’re all gonna be comin’ with me real quick here, but I’m feeling generous. Name’s Taako.” The elf, Taako, says in a slow drawl, like he could care less about this conversation. He crosses his arms and the umbrella levitates itself back into attack position. “You should all probably make this easier on yourselves and just come quietly, you know?” 

“What, to make your job easier?” Jenkins snaps and Kravitz isn’t surprised when Taako nods. He’s still processing that the Grim Reaper had _flirted_ with him, and besides, when he’s just observing it’s easier to get a hold on the situation. And he most definitely needs to get a hold on the situation. 

“Let us get the relic back first.” Kravitz offers almost unconsciously and isn’t surprised when his two teammates flip towards him, shocked. Taako looks shocked as well, but only for a moment. Kravitz takes that as a good sign and continues talking. “Let us get the relic, and then we’ll go with you.” He levels his gaze at the reaper, even as Jenkins whispers a frantic _what are you doing?!_ from next to him. 

“I’m not the biggest fan of _deals,”_ Taako states in that same slow tone of his. Kravitz feels his heart drop; if they can’t get the relic, the sea will freeze into the multicolored crystals they’ve seen through the whole lab. It won’t stop there, either. The crystals will consume everything. Every _one._ The thoughts scramble through Kravitz’s head in a whirl before the elf speaks again. “But honestly, you’re the prettiest guy I’ve gotten to talk to in _forever._ So, juuust this once, I’ll make an exception.”  


Kravitz doesn’t even think. 

“Thank you.” He says, and _means it._ He has no doubt that Taako could easily kill them, and yet the elf hasn’t. For now, that’s enough for Kravitz. Somehow, he sees a slight blush rise to the reaper’s face.

“It’s, uh, no problem, pal?” Another one of those strange rifts opens in the floor just behind him. “I’ll be back later though!” Taako opens his umbrella and steps back into the rift, falling slowly into it while waving goodbye with one hand. As the void closes, Kravitz idly feels like he should have paid money for a performance like that. 

As soon as the reaper is gone, Brian stalks towards Kravitz and just lets loose. 

“Did you honestly just promise him our souls in exchange for the relic?!” He’s absolutely fuming, and while Kravitz can understand why, the alternative wasn’t all that great either. 

“I bought us time!” The taller man says and that shuts Brian up quicker than he expects, but he still has a look on his face that says he has more comments to make. Kravitz isn’t going to let him. “Even you had to know we couldn’t beat him!” It’s no secret that Brian isn’t the master of thinking things through; Kravitz, on the other hand, makes it a point to. 

“Whatever.” Brian concedes, fiddling with his wand. “Let’s just find Burnsides and get out of here.” Jenkins nods along with Brian and Kravitz sheaths his sword. 

“Let’s.” He says curtly and walks in front of the other two. The door in front of them slides open and they enter, single file and in silence. 

Finding Magnus isn’t hard. 

He’s in the deepest sector of his lab, in front of a large robot in the shape of a woman. He’s almost cradling it, despite the metal being encased by crystal. Kravitz feels his heart clench; the scene reminds him too much of how he last saw Killian and Carey. Jenkins steps toward the obviously-grieving scientist. 

“Hand over the stone, Magnus.” His voice is cold. The man in question turns, eyes red. Then, ever so slowly, he points to the robot. 

The Philosopher’s Stone is clenched in her hands, and more crystal is creeping from the base of the bot. 

“I just wanted her back.” He says, voice choked. Brian starts to open his mouth to interrupt, but Magnus continues. “I searched for her for so long, in the Astral Plane… And I found her! I found her, my Julia, but when I t-transferred her into the robot, she… Something was _wrong._ She, she wasn’t right!” His breath catches in his throat as he gets louder. “She took the relic, and…” He turns back to the robot, and to the massive, perfectly circular mirror-like object behind it. Kravitz takes a step closer to it. Inside are thousands upon thousands of white orbs, swarming a building that looks too close to a prison for comfort. Suddenly, a voice echoes from the mirror. 

“Hey look, you found the relic! Time to pay up, honey.” Taako’s form appears in the shimmering surface and Jenkins frowns. 

“We don’t have it yet! The deal was for when we got it back, not for when we found it.” The elf laughs a little at that. 

“What’s some fucking technicalities between friends, right Jenkins?” The wizard in question pulls out his wand. Kravitz lets them bicker as he watches the white orbs behind Taako begin to amass themselves together. He’s startled away from the scene when Brian shouts something at the reaper. 

“Why do you need to kill us anyway?!” By this time he’s armed himself too, but Kravitz stays stationary. Taako leans against his umbrella like before, as if he couldn’t care less about the Reclaimer’s question. 

“My quarterly review’s comin’ up, my guy.” Just as Brian readies his reply, the mass of spirits Kravitz had noticed before descend upon Taako, almost enveloping him entirely. The elf shouts, full of agony, and then is silent. The spirits start to push themselves through the mirror and Kravitz sprints into action. 

“Magnus!” He shouts, running to the scientist, sword drawn. “How do we stop it?!” 

“I… The mirror…” Burnsides stands up, more motivated in the face of the ghosts now taking a more corporeal shape. “If you can destroy the mirror, they can’t stay in this plane.” Kravitz nods and turns back to his teammates. 

“Kravitz, you distract the ghosts, we’ll work on breaking the mirror!” Jenkins shouts over the now roaring mass in front of them. The man clenches his hand around his sword and readies himself to attack. Magnus takes a step back as Brian raises his wand. He fires off a spell at the mirror as Kravitz takes a strike at the squirming wall in front of him. His hit lands, Brian’s does not. It glances off the mirror and ricochets into Kravitz’s target, luckily, but the wizard turns to Jenkins with a sour look. 

“I think we need a new plan.” He simply says, and Kravitz would laugh at its obvious nature if he wasn’t going blow-to-blow with the prisoners he’d seen earlier in the mirror. 

“Whatever you’re going to do, do it quick!” He shouts as he loses his footing and just _barely_ misses a massive blow. Instead of hitting him, it lands in the wall of the lab, rocking it almost to its core. Jenkins, who had been in the middle readying a shot, lets fire right as the whole room shakes with the force of the hit. It goes off center, striking instead the dead-center of the crystalline figure of Julia Burnsides. The shining rock splinters down the middle and shatters, but they don’t have to worry about that at the moment. The mass sends a hulking hand in Brian’s direction and Kravitz is quick to push the other out of the way, the cost of doing so letting the attack glance into his shoulder. The dark-haired man groans in pain, nearly dropping his sword. Magnus runs over to him, the reason being unknown, but the ghosts don’t seem to like that very much. They ready another blow, but out of nowhere a robot figure steps in front of the scientist.

“You won’t touch my husband!” She hisses, and Kravitz uses the timing to throw his arms above his head and bring his sword down as hard as possible on the mirror itself. In the span of a few seconds, Julia is hit and the Philosopher’s Stone goes sailing out of her hands to land near Jenkins; in the same moment, Kravitz’s sword hits home. 

Their enemy groans in pain as the mirror cracks and slowly falls to pieces. 

The swordsman takes a deep intake of breath and falls heavily to the ground. He glances at his shoulder and realizes now that blood is dripping down it from the hit he took earlier. Julia turns to him. 

“Are you alright?” She asks, voice glitching slightly. Magnus grabs her hand almost desperately. 

“Julia,” He says, tightening his grip on her. “Julia, you’re okay! You’re here!” The man hugs her and Kravitz stands up, walking over to the rest of the Reclaimers. Jenkins leans down to pick up the Philosopher’s Stone. He stares into it for too long and Kravitz pulls it from his hand, ignoring its promises, ignoring its lies. A single ball of light begins to flicker from the area around the destroyed mirror; Brian groans. 

“While that was totally radical, I do still have to take the Burnsides in.” The light says, taking shape as the elf Kravitz is sure they’ll be complaining about later. Before Taako can say anything else, however, Brian snorts. 

“You think a minor illusion like that can fool me?” The illusion-Taako frowns. 

“Look pal, if your body got destroyed, you’d have a hard time takin’ any kind of form. This is easier.” Brian laughs again.

“Sure, sure. But we can _definitely_ beat you now.” He looks at Kravitz for some sort of confirmation; the man gives none. 

“Well, good thing I’m not here for you, huh? I’m here for Julia and Magnus.” The elf motions towards the scientist and robot and waves them over. They comply easily, and Kravitz can see it plainly. Magnus looks tired. “Are you two going without a fight or do I have to go all spooky scary on you?” Kravitz isn’t sure he wants to know what he’s talking about. Magnus nods, and looks over at his wife.

“Julia? I don’t want you to leave again…” Somehow, even as a robot, she looks sad. Taako interrupts. 

“Luckily, you’re both supposed to come with me!” His laid-back voice changes to a more serious tone. “I won’t separate you.” He says. The illusion slashes the air with his umbrella, creating a planar rift. Julia’s soul, that white shining light, leaves the metal form she was inhabiting and drifts forward, Magnus following it. They both step into the rift and vanish. Taako turns to walk into the void as well, but first he clears his throat. Kravitz feels something levitate from his pocket and looks at it. It’s his stone of farspeech. The man can feel a blush rising in his cheeks as the elf smirks and says “Call me!” before disappearing. Brian wolf-whistles, and Kravitz gives him a glare. 

“Let’s just get out of here.” He shakes his bag with the relic in it. “We have the stone, and when it’s destroyed the crystallization will stop. We need to get it back to the Director.” 

“The _Grim Reaper_ flirted with you. I cannot believe it.” Jenkins comments, muttering mostly to himself. “The things that happen in these jobs…” 

 

It’s hours later before Kravitz looks at his stone of farspeech again. It’s tuned to a new frequency, one he can only assume is Taako’s, and the man can’t say he isn’t curious. If anything, he’s at least worried about what happened to Magnus and Julia Burnsides. 

He flicks his stone on. 

“Uh.” He really didn’t think this through, it’s so late at night and you don’t call people late at night, what is he _doing-_ “Taako?” 

“Holy shit. You actually fucking called.” The reaper’s surprised voice crackles through the stone of farspeech. Kravitz takes a moment to reorganize himself. 

“I assume you gave me your frequency because you wanted me to use it?” It’s not the smoothest thing he could have said, but at least he says anything at all. 

“Oh, fuck yes I did but I tried to kill you? I thought you would, like, not be okay with that.” The elf admits and Kravitz does take a second to wonder why he’s doing this. But it’s not as if he can just back out now, apologize and end the call or something. 

“I was just curious about what happened to Magnus and Julia.” He mumbles, and Taako is quiet for a moment like he’s considering how much he wants to say. Kravitz fiddles with the stone in his hand, turning it over as he waits for the other to reply. 

“I gotta appeal their case to the Raven Queen, my boss, but I’m hoping she won’t make ‘em rot in the Eternal Stockade.” There’s a sound like paper rustling and the mortal wonders if extraplanar beings have to do paperwork. “She’s a sucker for love, so she might make some exceptions, but I dunno, homie.” 

“I see,” Kravitz starts, but he’s not sure where to go from here. He doesn’t want to hang up, but technically speaking he has no reason to stay on the line. “So, about trying to kill me?” He prompts, hoping that would get him...somewhere. He’s not sure where it even is that he wants to go, but he also knows that not many people get to talk to the actual Grim Reaper. 

“Yeah, I was just trying to beef up my score. I don’t actually have a bounty open for you dorks, but you’ve died. Like, a lot.” Kravitz’s eyebrows shoot up. He assumes he would remember having _died_ but apparently not. 

“I...?” He can’t get words to form. They had died before? As in, actual ‘soul has left the body’ death? 

“I mean, if you wanted to, let’s say, talk about it, we could meet up somewhere?” There’s a hopeful note in his voice and the change in tone is almost jarring; he’d gotten so used to the slow drawl that the reaper has been using for nearly all he’s known him. Which, granted, is technically only about a day, but Taako has talked a lot in that span of time. 

“I’m sorry, are you asking me on a date?” 

“Yeah. The Astral Plane is, pretty fucking boring, my dude. I need to get out, do something fun!” Just based on some of the things Jenkins and Brian describe him as, Kravitz can’t really understand why hanging out with him would be fun. 

“Sure.” He agrees anyway. And why not? He has no reason not to. Besides, he’ll make sure that they’re somewhere heavily populated. Safety in numbers never fails. 

“Kravitz, my man, you are just _full_ of surprises.” Taako giggles and Kravitz reflexively smiles. “Got any sick moonbase hotspots?” The mortal falters there; he really isn’t one to wander around places he doesn’t need to be. The elf seems to sense his dilemma and laughs a bit louder. “I’m sure we can figure something out.” 

Their conversation ends soon after, with a promise of getting in touch later. It takes Kravitz a lot longer than usual to fall asleep that night, the fact that he has literally set up a date with death weighing on his mind. It isn’t so much that he regrets it; more like he just doesn’t know where it will take him. He decides to take things as they come. There is no use in worrying about something you can’t control, he reasons. 

 

Taako is something Kravitz most definitely cannot control. 

The wizard is a mess in the best sense of the word, loose and playful in ways Kravitz hasn’t really experienced after the Phandalin mess. It’s like a breath of fresh air on the moonbase and their date goes so well they schedule more, one after another. The swordsman absolutely does not tell his companions about said dates; Brian would explode and Jenkins would have a heart attack. While their presence at times is so, so trying, they are still his teammates. He talks about them sometimes, on his dates with Taako. Telling stories of their antics makes the reaper laugh more often than not, so Kravitz makes sure to bring them up at least once per date. He likes hearing the elf laugh. 

He isn’t quite sure if he has a fever on every date, or if he’s just really, _really_ in love. 

 

Director Highchurch calls them in for another mission far too soon. Kravitz somehow thinks that the Bureau has been finding relics faster now that they’ve joined, but he pushes that thought to the back of his mind. They’re searching for an item called the Temporal Chalice, this time. A cup that lets the user warp time itself to fit their needs. A power like that was something no one should have. The Director tells them that he knows where it is, but they’ll have a tough time getting to it. The entire town is surrounded by a bubble of some kind, they’re told, and the only way in is to be going at _immense_ speeds.

They manage that easily enough. 

Breaking through the bubble, they enter into what seems like just a vast, white, open space. An old, frail woman stands at the center of it. Without saying a word, she looks them over, waves her palm, and all three Reclaimers are unconscious. When they wake up, they are standing at the front entrance of a town called Refuge. A tall person stands near them, a bird perched on their shoulder. 

“Hello!” They say. “Please identify yourselves!” 

That moment is the beginning of a very, very long day. 

They die four times in a row. The first time, they’re terrified. They have no idea what’s happened -- none of them have ever died and _remembered_ it, after all. Kravitz is left with the dizzying thought that they had fucked up somehow, that it was their fault. Brian is almost in hysterics, he’s a mess, and Jenkins is silent, which is somehow almost as nerve-wracking. They wake up back at Refuge’s gate.

The second time, it’s still jarring. They opened a locker of some kind, down in the quarry, and had literally been blown to pieces. It takes Kravitz a few minutes to regain his balance when they wake up at the gate again. He holds his stomach and frantically searches the ground for blood and other substances before he realizes he’s whole again. It doesn’t make the experience any less horrific. Jenkins throws up on the ground near the gate; Brian has a look in his eyes that vaguely reminds Kravitz of Magnus Burnsides. They’re worse off mentally than before, but at least they have a better lay of the land. 

The third time, they see the cause of the destruction of the town. It’s a massive purple worm, lurking underground. Every loop, at noon sharp, it springs from where it lay and wreaks havoc on Refuge. The Reclaimers get up close and personal with it, and Kravitz deeply hopes the next loop won’t involve him getting torn to pieces again. He voices this, and the swordsman's two companions frantically agree. 

The fourth time, they find out the secret. The secret of Jack and June, the heroes of Refuge. Brian reads the journal slowly, less for effect and more because it’s hard for him to breathe. They learn how the thrall of the Chalice led to Jack’s death, and the creation of the bubble by June. The worm bursts from the ground, caving in the last of the cavern where they’re standing. Rock and gravel had already been filling their throats, but now it crushes them. 

The fifth time is the final time. 

They make their way down, deeper into the quarry than they’ve ever been. Kravitz very idly realizes that if they make it out of this, he’s going to be claustrophobic for the rest of his life. They pass various trials, somehow. At this point, everything is almost a blur. He’s played this scene so many times. 

They find June, holding the Temporal Chalice in her small, child hands and, with some divine intervention, pop the bubble she’s surrounded herself in. They stand around, debating on what to do, when there’s a sound like ripping silk. 

The clock tower chimes, one. 

“Oh, no.” Kravitz breathes. 

Taako steps through the rift.

The clock tower chimes, two. Things begin to rumble above them.

He sees Kravitz, and smiles. 

“I finally found you!” 

The clock tower chimes, three. There’s an ear-splitting sound that doesn’t register at this point.

“You shouldn’t be here-” Kravitz starts, frantically. 

The clock tower chimes, four. The ground shifts against massive pressure.

“What do you mean? I’ve been watching your death count go up, Krav, I couldn't just _wait around!”_

The clock tower chimes, five. The walls of the cavern begin to crumble.

“Something isn’t right,” Taako starts. 

The clock tower chimes, six. Rocks cascade from atop support beams.

Kravitz can’t breathe. He doesn’t think; he only runs. 

He grabs the Chalice from June’s hands, and everything goes white. 

He hasn’t been taken in by a thrall; no, he’s been rendered senseless by something even stronger: The fear of watching someone you love die in front of you. He couldn’t take it when Killian and Carey had died. He could barely stand it when he couldn’t help Magnus. Losing Taako would break him into too many pieces to ever recover. 

June’s form appears before him, but he knows he’s speaking to the consciousness of the Temporal Chalice. She breathes in deeply. 

“Thank you for claiming me.” She sees the wild look in Kravitz’s eyes and begins to explain his situation. “The one you love would have died without you claiming me,” She says. “Despite being an extraplanar being, his soul could still be destroyed. The looping of this town would not have let it return to the Astral Plane, and would have been stuck here until it had been utterly pulverized.” She doesn’t smile like Kravitz thinks she will; in fact, she almost looks sympathetic. Kravitz can’t tell if these are just more lies made by the relics, or something completely true. 

In his heart-pounding terror, he finds he _doesn’t even care._

June gives him a moment before she continues speaking.  
“There are a few things about using me…” The wide expanse of the room is filled with only her voice and Kravitz’s heartbeat. “You will need to create a whole new timeline, and it can’t follow a path like this one, or there will be… issues. That being said, you can never join the Bureau of Balance again.” Kravitz sucks in a deep, shaky breath. 

“I just want to reset everything.” 

“What?” June is startled, taken aback by such a quick decision. 

“I want to change everything.” Kravitz says slowly. “I want things to be different. Completely. You can do that, yes?” 

“Yes, but that involves using me and then giving me up…” The man interrupts her almost as soon as she finishes talking.

“So you can do it.” 

“Yes.” She looks him in the eyes, hard as steel. “Are you _sure_ this is what you want?” Kravitz nods, and everything goes white once more. 

__________________________________________________________

Kravitz wakes up at his desk. 

A woman walks into his office. He recognizes her quickly enough; She’s Julia Burnsides. One of his coworkers for the Raven Queen, though not a reaper like he is. She laughs a little at his dazed look and he smiles at her. They are friends. 

“You’ve never been one for sleeping on the job, Krav.” She says, voice twinkling in the room. 

“Maybe I was taking a much-needed break.” He jokes, resting his chin in his hand as he eyes Julia’s handful of papers. “More bounties?” She nods. 

“You know it. Take a look; you’ll probably have to head out soon. I haven’t looked at them yet, so call me on your stone when you finish up.” She passes off the folders to him and waves as she leaves the room. Kravitz sets them down next to each other in a line and flips them open, one by one. 

“Lucas Miller, Maureen Miller.” Run-of-the-mill necromancy, it looks like. His eyes run over the lines of text on the next paper. “Merle Highchurch, died 57 times? That’s...definitely not normal.” He continues reading. “Magnus Burnsides, died 19 times…” Kravitz flinches at the name; He doesn’t want to be the one to tell Julia that her husband has a bounty. His fingers freeze over the last name, and he doesn’t understand why. 

“Taako Taaco, died 8 times.” Something about it seems so familiar and the reaper can’t put his finger on it, but suddenly he feels sorrowful, somehow. 

Kravitz pushes it to the back of his mind, and opens a planar rift.

**Author's Note:**

> welcome to "Yes I listened to Eleventh Hour but roleswap au has no rules" The Fic  
> mmm i love that sweet sweet angst
> 
> should i have tagged this as mindfuck??? does it count??
> 
> i shouldnt have written this all in one sitting i never want to think about roleswap au again 
> 
> title from Will You Remember Me from Nice Work If You Can Get It
> 
> time 2 ramble down here where you can easily scroll past it  
> ok like!! my descriptions are not the best lmao especially not when you get down to the eleventh hour section (is it obvious how much i dislike writing fights?) this started out as me rambling in the taz discord about roleswap au where krav takes the chalice and it just evolved into this mess and i was so dedicated to it??? like i just needed to get it out of my system and im sorry you've all been subjected to it lmao  
> OH ALSO my explanation that i didnt actually get to use for why taako was able to get to refuge: he couldn't find him in a general sense but kravitz still had his stone of farspeech on so taako used that and his magic to basically tune into his frequency and match that with the ability to open rifts in space-time  
> he basically loopholed the system  
> leave it to taako tbh
> 
> i cant stop talking i just feel like i have 2 explain myself  
> like kravitz grabbing the chalice like he was literally confronted with "i am going to watch the person i love die. he is going to die in front of me and i cant do anything about it" like when you're faced with something like that you're not gonna be very rational?? especially considering the, ehem, _time constraint_  
>  i cannot emphasize how little he was thinking  
> like his ability to think clearly just ollied right the fuck out


End file.
